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The Impact of COVID-19 on the Health and Experience of the Carers of Older Family Members Living with Dementia: An Italian–Hungarian Comparative Study

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  • László Árpád Kostyál

    (Institute of Mental Health, Semmelweis University, P.O. Box 2, 1428 Budapest, Hungary)

  • Zsuzsa Széman

    (Institute of Mental Health, Semmelweis University, P.O. Box 2, 1428 Budapest, Hungary)

  • Virág Erzsébet Almási

    (Independent Researcher, 1191 Budapest, Hungary)

  • Paolo Fabbietti

    (Unit of Geriatric Pharmacoepidemiology and Biostatistics, IRCCS INRCA-National Institute of Health and Science on Ageing, Via Santa Margherita 5, 60124 Ancona, Italy)

  • Sabrina Quattrini

    (Centre for Socio-Economic Research on Ageing, IRCCS INRCA-National Institute of Health and Science on Ageing, Via Santa Margherita 5, 60124 Ancona, Italy)

  • Marco Socci

    (Centre for Socio-Economic Research on Ageing, IRCCS INRCA-National Institute of Health and Science on Ageing, Via Santa Margherita 5, 60124 Ancona, Italy)

  • Cristina Gagliardi

    (Centre for Socio-Economic Research on Ageing, IRCCS INRCA-National Institute of Health and Science on Ageing, Via Santa Margherita 5, 60124 Ancona, Italy)

Abstract

This quantitative study ( n = 370) compares the pandemic-related experiences of the family carers of older people living with dementia during the first wave of the pandemic, in two countries with different care regimes: Italy (Mediterranean) and Hungary (Eastern European). It aims at answering the following research questions: (1) How did the pandemic affect the subjective health of carers, and what were their experiences with care-related worries and workload? (2) What factors significantly predicted negative changes in these experiences? (3) What were carers’ main difficulties during the first pandemic wave? Results have shown that carers in both samples reported a worsening in mental health (Italy/Hungary: M = 2.25/2.55, SD = 0.93/0.99), and Italian carers also in general health (M = 2.54, SD = 0.98) (on a scale of 1 to 5, with values under “3” representing deterioration). Carers in both samples experienced high worry levels (Italy/Hungary: M = 4.2/3.7, SD = 0.93/0.89) and feeling overwhelmed with care tasks (M = 3.2/3.7, SD = 1.3/1.3) (on a scale of 1 to 5, higher values representing higher worry/work overload). In regression models, all of the above negative experiences were predicted by a combination of factors. Two of these factors stood out in importance due to being a predictor of more than one type of negative experience: a decline in the carer–care receiver relationship, predicting work overload, as well as general and mental health deterioration and being the child of the care receiver, predicting both high worry and subjective work overload. The top five encountered problems were the unavailability of medical and social care, difficulties with shopping (medicine included), restricted freedom, isolation, and anxiety.

Suggested Citation

  • László Árpád Kostyál & Zsuzsa Széman & Virág Erzsébet Almási & Paolo Fabbietti & Sabrina Quattrini & Marco Socci & Cristina Gagliardi, 2022. "The Impact of COVID-19 on the Health and Experience of the Carers of Older Family Members Living with Dementia: An Italian–Hungarian Comparative Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-29, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:9:p:5329-:d:803651
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Martin Pinquart & Silvia Sörensen, 2007. "Correlates of Physical Health of Informal Caregivers: A Meta-Analysis," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 62(2), pages 126-137.
    2. Rosa Angela Fabio & Rossella Suriano, 2021. "The Influence of Media Exposure on Anxiety and Working Memory during Lockdown Period in Italy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-11, September.
    3. Martin Pinquart & Silvia Sörensen, 2003. "Associations of Stressors and Uplifts of Caregiving With Caregiver Burden and Depressive Mood: A Meta-Analysis," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 58(2), pages 112-128.
    4. Aviad Tur-Sinai & Andrea Teti & Alexander Rommel & Valentina Hlebec & Giovanni Lamura, 2020. "How Many Older Informal Caregivers Are There in Europe? Comparison of Estimates of Their Prevalence from Three European Surveys," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-17, December.
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